It is fun to go back and forth between the 1995 and 1996, two superb vintages for Haut-Brion. The 1995 seems to have sweeter tannin and a bit more fat and seamlessness when compared to the more structured and muscular 1996. Certainly 1995 was a vintage that the brilliant administrator Jean Delmas handled flawlessly. The result is a deep ruby/purple-colored wine with a tight but promising nose of burning wood embers intermixed with vanilla, spice box, earth, mineral, sweet cherry, black currant, plum-like fruit, medium to full body, a high level of ripe but sweet tannin, and a finish that goes on for a good 40-45 seconds. This wine is just beginning to emerge from a very closed state where it was unyielding and backward. Anticipated maturity: 2006-2035. Last tasted, 11/02.

Robert Parker (Bordeaux Book, 4th Edition Jan 2003)

The more I taste this wine, the more I like it. This is one of the few 95s that do not typify the austerity of the vintage. Full-bodied, concentrated and aromatic, with a nose of smoke, cigar wrapper, burning forest leaves, and currants, the is loaded with fresh currants, herbs, cedar, and tobacco on the palate. You find good length and energy making you want to enjoy another sniff and sip. Drink from 2022-2050. tasted Nov 2022

Quality 929 | Brand 998 | Economics 943 | buzz brand
Quality: Predicted life of 24 years, one of the longest drinking windows in its peer group for the 1995 vintage, which averages 12 years Brand: Strong restaurant presence, featuring on 50 of the world's top wine lists, including Chez Bruce Economics: More traded at auction than its peers, its top 5 vintages having seen 3,255 75cl equivalent bottles traded in the past year Production: Higher production than its peer group average of 92,455 bottles

- www.wine-lister.com June 2017

This 1995 Haut-Brion was served blind during the summer at a private dinner in Bordeaux, a bottle with perfect provenance. It is a vintage that I have drunk several times, but not since 2013. Deep in colour, the 1995 has plenty of black fruit on the nose, displaying a distinctive briny influence, classic in style with stunning definition. There is something regal about the aromatics. The palate is well-balanced, with fine acidity and black fruit once again, sappy and saline, with an underlying ash-like note emerging as it opens in the glass. Though quite linear towards the tobacco and sous-bois finish, the 1995 conspicuously gains weight and breeding with time. Therefore, I would afford this First Growth four to five hours of decanting as it remains more backward than I imagined. Nov 2021

Sweet tobacco, blackberries and violets on the nose. Subtle. Full-bodied and very tight, with fantastic tannins and a long caressing finish. Wonderful texture. All in reserve still. Give this time.--'95/'96 Bordeaux retrospective. James Suckling

Very good deep red-ruby. Sweet, highly expressive aromas of redcurrant, hot stones, roasted plum, woodsmoke and tobacco. Fuller and more textured in the middle palate, with a chewy, tactile mouth feel that suggests strong extract and a wonderfully pliant texture. A firm mineral underpinning and sound acids frame the fruit. Expansive and seductively sweet in the mouth. Finishes very long and ripe, with thoroughly civilized tannins.

Just lovely wine, and the only one that was not dominated by a single variety, being a Cabernet/Merlot blend. Excellent lustrous, nuanced ruby.. Clearly a very fine mature wine. Strong liquorice notes (Haut-Brion 'warm bricks' earthiness?) For a second I wondered if it was a 1998 Hermitage. Very complex. Spread across the palate. My guess is that no one dared guess it was a first growth but we were looking for appreciation in the comments box... JR